


what is it worth (when all that's left is hurt)

by orphan_account



Series: Fill the Void [14]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter RPF
Genre: Angst, Fake AH Crew, Hurt/Comfort, Injury Recovery, M/M, Minor Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:55:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23343577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Jeremy didn't know where they could go from here. Stuck in Chicago during a blizzard. Ryan injured. And Jeremy nearly at his wits end.At least Ryan maintained his sense of humor in all this.
Relationships: Jeremy Dooley/Ryan Haywood
Series: Fill the Void [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1663750
Kudos: 55





	what is it worth (when all that's left is hurt)

Chicago was miserable this time of year. A weather system had decided to sit over the stretch of highway Jeremy found himself upon. Visibility was severely hampered. He’d have to pull over for the night if he didn’t want to get snowed in, and judging by the condition of the passenger in his backseat, he’d say it was the right one to make.

He looked in his rear view mirror and saw Ryan, curled up as best he could despite the size of the car they were driving. He looked to be sleeping, but Jeremy couldn’t be sure. He looked much too pale for Jeremy’s liking, liking bleeding through the patch work job he had to do with the dressings. But he was alive and that was all that mattered.

The heavy snow came with one blessing at least. Passing police officers and crew members of the gang they left behind in the city wouldn’t chase them into this. They wouldn’t spot the stolen car in the thick of it.

When he came upon a motel, he pulled in and parked. “Ryan?” he said.

Ryan grunted softly. Okay. So he wasn’t dead or unconscious. That was a step in the right direction.

“I’m stepping out to get a room. I’ll be right back for you.”

He grunted again but did not move or even open his eyes. Jeremy got out as quick as he could, trudging through the snow in mothering other than his sneakers. It was inches thick already and didn’t look to be slowing any time soon. He did not miss this life. Living in the bitter cold and snow. Los Santos had its heatwaves, but anything was better than being buried in layers of snow and ice.

He approached the front desk and asked for a room.

“Are you the only one?” he was asked.

“Uh, no, there’s two and could I get, um, some more towels.”

The woman behind the front desk—an older woman—gave him an incredulous look. “That’ll be an extra charge,” she said dryly, and Jeremy could only imagine what she’d think they were going to get up to, but sex couldn’t be further from his mind. He paid whatever he had to and waited for her to deliver the towels and the house key.

He checked out the room first and tossed the towels down on the bed—two of them, he did notice. He ran back to the car, got his backpack out of the trunk, and went into the backseat to help Ryan up. “Almost there, pal,” he said. “Come on. One in front of the other.”

Ryan was nearly dead weight. He’d be sluggish and tired from the blood loss and sore all over from the fights beforehand.

It had been nasty business handling the Banshees up in Chicago, but they were working on pulling information about a valuable asset. And what they had encountered was nothing but grueling fire fights. The animosity hadn’t been something they expected or were prepared for. And the cost was a knife to Ryan’s stomach that he was shielding Jeremy from. They were lucky it wasn’t anything too deep or near any vital organs. With what medical knowledge he had gained during his time with the Fakes, Jeremy was able to staunch the bleeding long enough to shove Ryan into the back seat of a car and start driving to get out of the city. Geoff’s asset be damned. They had to get out of here and find and airport back home.

He laid out a towel on the bed for Ryan to lie back on. Hopefully it would catch whatever was to happen next and save the bedspread at least. They’d be no room in the bathroom to do this.

“Off with the shirt, big guy.” He start to help Ryan to remove his shirt, tattered and stained and beyond saving.

“’f you just wanted me out of my clothes, all you have to do is ask,” Ryan said, smiling rather cheekily if a bit dopily.

“Good to see you still got your flirt on,” Jeremy said, not flinching at the way Ryan groaned when he lifted his hands above his head. He couldn’t afford to be in over his head with this.

He decided to cut the dressing off rather than unwrapping it layer by layer and cause Ryan more grief. It looked quite a scene—the blood, having dried, smeared over his torso making it seem as if the wound was worse than it actually was. The cut could hardly be larger than two inches in length. Went cleanly in and came out without any great spurts of blood. Ryan should live should he get enough fluids and rest in the coming days. He’d be right as rain within a month.

Ryan’s arms were lax, spread out away from his body allowing Jeremy the space to work. Jeremy got the suture kit out and started the painstaking work of cleaning the wound and sewing the edges together to hold. Once that was done, he wiped down Ryan’s entire body.

“Sponge bath too?” Ryan said. “Mm, must be my birthday.”

“Oh, you’d know if it was your birthday,” Jeremy said. “It’d be more than just a sponge bath.”

Ryan hummed and breathed peacefully. It was a good sound to Jeremy’s ears who hadn’t been able to stop hearing the pained grunt when Ryan had been stabbed. And now here he was, pliant and warm with a slight smile on his face as he was cared for by Jeremy. He looked perfectly content, and Jeremy was beginning to think that the worst was over.

Once everything was done and Ryan was dressed once more, Jeremy suggested he call down and get some food from the kitchens while they were still open and operating. After a quick shower on Jeremy’s part, there was a knock at the door. He took in the trays and set one on the bed bedside Ryan, choosing to sit on the opposite bed.

It was good to see Ryan eat so heartily, propped up against the headboard with plenty of pillows to support him. Having eaten, washed, and resting in a warm room, they were certainly out of dangerous waters. Even Ryan’s less than ideal condition couldn’t hold Jeremy back from moving up on the edge of the bed next to him. Laying a hand on him. Feeling how warm he was. Listening to how he breathed. How he moved.

“I thought being snowed in would mean something different for us,” Ryan said. “But I guess this will do.”

“As long as I have you , that’s all that matters to me. Besides. Your birthday is coming up in a month.”

“It is.”

They shared a look and snickered before Ryan closed his eyes and pressed a hand to his side. Jeremy laid his over top until the moment passed.

“Mm, what would I do without you?” he said softly, opening his eyes.

Still too pale for Jeremy’s liking, he was looking better with every passing moment. “I think we all know,” he said, and Ryan hummed in reply. His breathing deepened. He went slack, and Jeremy finally felt as if he could relax and rest. 


End file.
